


What The Cat Dragged In

by thatwritersdream



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Action/Adventure, Angst, Drama & Romance, F/M, Family Drama
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-09
Updated: 2017-07-09
Packaged: 2018-11-30 00:30:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,076
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11452254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thatwritersdream/pseuds/thatwritersdream
Summary: What if there was more to the reason why Ladybug ignored Chat and his advances? What if that reason was because the last Chat Noir hurt her more than anything else?





	1. Prologue

When the new Chat Noir came into the superhero world, Ladybug noticed the differences nearly immediately. He was too excited, too naive and too reckless. That alone could get him hurt, or in a worst-case scenario, it could get him killed. Hadn't Plagg explained to the new guy the rules and ways of being a miraculous holder?

This is Plagg we're talking about Marinette, of course, he didn't.

The cat puns were too much for Ladybug, puns she found that she didn't like very much anymore. Her Chat, the old Chat, he would crack puns at the worst moment as well, but they slowly came to an end about five months ago. In fact, their whole dynamic had seemed to change. As a team, they drifted. As partners, they were no longer in sync. It was the worst feeling Ladybug had ever felt, not knowing what had been going on with her partner, because even in his civilian form he had turned cold to her as well.

Maybe it was Plagg, when he transformed his miraculous holder they became cat pun machines, that were also outgoing flirts. It couldn't be a coincidence that this other Chat Noir loved puns too and was extremely outgoing with advances. Not to mention he was also blonde.

Of course, that was the one thing that had caught Ladybug's attention nearly immediately, the striking similarities. The old Chat Noir, he had blue eyes with his long blond hair a untamed mess. This Chat Noir, the new one, had vivid green eyes that seemed to glow like an actual cat's with the sclerae of the leather mask, his blond hair a bit shorter but also untamed.

It's too much too bare right now.

It was uncanny, really, how much this stranger could remind her of her partner of two and a half years. What she could tell was that the current Chat Noir was around her age, while her old partner was nearly two years older. Yet the immaturity radiating off Chat now was something Ladybug would never think to witness.

He was amazed at his powers, recklessly and thoughtlessly using his Cataclysm to use against Stone Heart, who Ladybug knew was her fellow classmate Ivan. Yet Ladybug couldn't exactly stop Chat from activating his power, to begin with, and destroying the goal post of the soccer field.

"Did you see that LB!?" Chat exclaimed, practically beaming.

Ladybug stiffened at the name, body rigid at the name only he was allowed to call her. It didn't sound right for this guy, the newbie, to use her nickname so personally and so intimately. Yet she didn't have the heart to correct him or tell him not to call her that, not when half of Paris called her the same name.

"It was a waste of your power." Ladybug stated bluntly, giving Chat an annoyed look as she ignored his proud smile. "Didn't your kwami explain to you once you activate your power, you have five minutes before transforming back into your civilian self?"

Chat seems to pause in his movement for a second, then sheepishly scratched the back of his head. "I was a little too excited and didn't exactly let him finish explaining."

Ladybug had to suppress the urge to roll her eyes. For once it wasn't completely Plagg's fault. That alone was new. Not commenting on it, Ladybug tossed her yo-yo in the air as she focused the familiar warm pull of her power.

"Lucky Charm!" Ladybug yelled out, the pink shimmers revealing what looked to be a wetsuit before it fell into her hands.

"That looks helpful," Chat muttered sarcastically. "What do you do with that?"

Ladybug gave him a vexed expression, gathering the suit in her hand as she looked at various spots trying to determine what exactly she does right then and there, now limited on time since her new, seemingly impulsive partner, used his power.

"Use it to break the object where the Akuma is located at." Ladybug explained just in case this Chat needed to know the basic on what to do.

"Well, where is it located?" Chat questioned, tilting his head as he scanned Stone Heart. "He's made entirely out of stone."

"Right there, Captain Obvious." Ladybug nodded towards Stone Heart's hand. "His right hand is still close, and he hasn't opened it once. Basically like the Russian Dolls, it's not always on him but hidden in his fist."

"So what's your plan?" Chat already knew she had a plan, she always had a plan from what he'd seen before in his civilian self.

In the distance, Ladybug could see Alya, the new girl in her class that was in love with superheroes. The blue eyes superhero already know this girl would become a problem in the future, a possible liability that was endangering herself. She would only get in the way.

Without answering Chat Noir's question, Ladybug grabbed the water hose by their feet and worked in concentration. Fast movements, concentrated on the task, and a few moments later Ladybug had her solution with the wetsuit tightly tied to the end if the water hose.

Swinging her yo-yo, Ladybug wrapped it around Chat's leathered clad legs and pulled sharply. "Trust me on this and don't resist!" Was all she said as she threw him right at Stone Heart.

"This girl's crazy!" Chat yelled as he soared through the air towards the stone giant, who caught him with his left hand.

"Catch me if you can!" Ladybug yelled as she quickly jumped into action with her tied wetsuit in hand.

She had a moment of satisfaction as Stone Heart went to grab her with his right hand, smirking slightly as the object fell to the floor. With a quick shout, Ladybug barked her orders. "Alya, the tap!"

Alya was quick to obey the orders, running to the right to turn the water faucet on before Stone Heart realized his mistake. The water flowed rapidly into the wetsuit, forcing it to grow in the grip of Stone Heart to open just enough for Ladybug to squeeze herself through to jump to the ground and run towards Ivan's object. Not even hesitating, she stomped on the object, freeing the dark little butterfly.

"No more evil doing for you little butterfly." Ladybug muttered softly, activating her catcher that lead to the successful capture and cleansing of the Akuma. "Miraculous Ladybug!"

With that, Ladybug tossed the wetsuit back into the air; resulting in the hundreds of ladybugs running across the sky and fixing the damage that was done to the city by Stone Heart. Smiling briefly, Ladybug looked over at a confused Ivan asking where he was and what happened.

Maybe this wouldn't be so bad. Maybe Ladybug could work with what she had been given. Only that thought was short lived as Chat Noir wrapped his arm around her shoulder, grinning in triumph at their victory.

"Nice job Ladybug." Chat praised, looking at her with those very green eyes. "Question though. Do we reveal who we are?"

The question brought back so many bittersweet memories. It helped to know who your partner was both inside and outside the mask. Really it did because it allowed the freedom to vent and talk about troubles with someone else who understood how hard it was to balance two lives.

And it sucked when they left.

Perhaps that was why Ladybug said what she did. It wasn't because she didn't want too, hell she really would, maybe it was to save herself this time. Maybe it was to save herself the heartache if this one decided to leave.

"It's better if we don't."

Saved by the beeping of her earrings and his ring, she gave a soft smile. "Until next time, Chat Noir."

The next day Marinette went back to Collège Françoise Dupont, early for once this year and meeting Alya on the bottom steps. It was rare really, for the young fashion designer to ever be early on a school morning. Over the past two and half years, Marinette's attendance had flipped and flopped a few times with the annual intervention if her parents and teachers.

It was all a balancing act that she had to perfect, being Marinette; the daughter of bakers, a student with a passion for fashion and being Ladybug; her superhero alter ego that protected Paris and the people no matter what time of day it was or what she was currently doing in that time.

This city was her life now, her job, responsibility, and obligation. Tikki was the only one she could fully talk to now about her on and off stress, the only one who understood. It was something that was difficult, but Marinette knew how to deal with it now the older she got, growing more mature as well. Sometimes more mature than she should be.

"Did you see Ladybug yesterday on my Lady blog!?" Alya excitedly asked, nudging Marinette.

Apparently, Alya never believed she'd see a real life superhero, and since she moved to Paris she now had a local superhero. Thus the inner reporter in her had sprung to life, creating the Lady blog as the first and number one news station and updates on Ladybug,

Of course, Marinette worried for her new found friend's safety. Yesterday Alya had gotten a little too close for Marinette's comfort. It was a dangerous hobby, one that Marinette never had to deal with before. The past two years Chat and herself never had to deal with civilians being so close since their natural reaction was to run.

Then came Alya, the bravest civilian to probably walk the earth.

"Yeah, I think it's cool!" Marinette praised her, offering an encouraging smile. "But promise to be careful if you follow into her battles? You could get hurt."

Alya merely rolled her eyes and waved her hand in a dismissive gesture. "Girl, you're working too much! I know my limits, trust me."

Marinette nodded, dropping the subject since she always knew the outcome for her convincing Alya to not follow would not get great.

Inside the classroom, Chloe was forcing a smile onto her face as she caught sight of Adrien Agreste.

"This is your seat, Adrikins. I saved it for you. Right in front of me!" Chloe sweetly said, sweeping her arm to present the seat right in front of the one she forced herself to own this year.

Adrien nodded, unsure. "Thanks, Chloe." He then slid into the seat beside the other boy, offering a slight smile. "Uh, hey- I'm Adrien."

The other boy glanced the blond model up and down, as if analyzing him in that quick of a moment, then taking a look back at Chloe. Adrien wasn't sure why this made him uneasy, but it did.

"You're friends with Chloe now, huh?" He stated more than asked, watching how Chloe went from her seat to the seats aside from his own and now Adrien's.

Adrien could feel the double meaning of his question. Was this how public schools were? It felt a bit judgmental, but then again he should have expected that. At least he wasn't getting so much attention from girls, ignoring those who asked for autographs. He had been nervous walking into the place, but now he wasn't so sure.

Looking back at Chloe, Adrien found her gone from her spot and frowned. He didn't like feeling as if she were up to something. His intuition hardly ever let him down. When he heard a snicker, she turned around to find Chloe sticking gum on the seat with the girl she told him about before, Sabrina.

"Hey, what's all this about?" He inquired.

Chloe snickered again. "The brats that sat here yesterday need a little attitude adjustment. I'm just commanding a bit of respect, that's all."

Adrien wasn't so sure about that. He knew personally you couldn't exactly command respect, it was earned- just like trust. "You think that's really necessary?"

"Ah, You've got a lot to learn about school culture, Adrikins. Watch the master." The tone of her voice was so confident that he almost believed her for a moment, but Chloe wasn't nice.

Adrien already knew that for a while at least. Sighing, He knelt down to pulled the gum off as the classroom's door opened with a loud, hey! The sound of a girl yelling had Adrien stand up so fast as if he was being caught red handed.

Might as well had been.

"Hey! What are you doing?" Marinette eyed the blond boy, momentarily wondering if all the boys she meets would be blond. It had to be a major coincidence.

Only when he turned around to look at her in alarm, she froze in her spot. Those green eyes, the blond hair were very familiar. Quick not to dwell on it for the moment, Marinette snapped back into reality.

"Uhh..I." He flopped for words while Chloe and Sabrina cackled in laughter.

"Okay. I get it. Good job, you three. Very funny." Marinette muttered darkly, using a tissue from her purse to cover the chewed piece of gum.

"No, I was just trying to take this off!" Adrien defended.

"Oh really?" Marinette asked, disbelieving. "You're friends with Chloé, right?"

Adrien opened his mouth, closed it and went back to his seat. "Why do people keep saying that?"

"Now do you see what I mean about respect?" Chloe sneered shamelessly, glaring at Marinette, who wasn't even focused on either of the blondes.

Instead, Marinette was focused on Alya's phone, displaying multiple photo shoot spreads of someone Marinette merely heard stories about. It all made sense, perfect sense.

"I knew I have seen him somewhere before... Of course! He's the son of my fave fashion designer, Gabriel Agreste!" Marinette played the part, feigning false surprise and recognition.

Maybe it wasn't fake recognition because she'll admit that she didn't exactly realize or was familiar with the blond model; really she was a huge fan of his father's work. Other than that, he wasn't the blond she was familiar with.

"He's Daddy's boy, teen supermodel, and Chloe's buddy? Forget it." Alya crossed her arms, clearly drawing a metaphorical line that existed for just the two of them.

"Why didn't you tell her it was Chloé's idea?" The boy next to ask, seeing how sad Adrien got when Marinette wouldn't listen. Of course, he also knew Marinette was very kind and forgiving, positive she'd give Adrien a chance when she understood what had happened.

Adrien sighed, giving the other boy a defeated look. "I've known Chloe since I was a little kid. And I know she's not perfect, but I can't throw her under the bus. She's like my only friend."

Jeez, sad story.

"I'm Nino, and it's time for you to make some new friends, dude." Nino offered a hand, a hand Adrien gladly accepted into a firm handshake, a silent promise.

From the side, as Ms. Bustier came into the classroom and started her introductions and attendance sheet, Marinette couldn't help but take a glance at Adrien Agreste, knowing exactly who he was. It all made sense, so much sense that Marinette wondered if the world was just trying to screw her over.

Because across from her seat on the left sat her new Chat Noir, the younger brother of Felix Agreste, her older partner in fighting crime who left her.


	2. In My Veins

* * *

 

**What The Cat Dragged In**

**Chapter 01**

**In My Veins**

* * *

Adrien Agreste couldn't hide it, he was in love with his crime fighting partner, Ladybug. She was brave, and strong, and everything he aspired to be in some sort of way. Of course that wasn't just it. It was the fact that every time he tried to make advances or flirt with her, she would shoot him down just as fast. It hurt him at first, that was until Plagg got tired of his moping and told him that she probably had a hard time after the last Chat Noir.

Adrien had tried to ask Plagg what he meant, but the little black kwami would never tell him; saying it was up to Ladybug if she ever wanted to talk about it. Of course with Adrien being curious, he had asked her earlier on in his Chat Noir days, only to be completely caught off guard when Ladybug snapped at him that it was none of his business.

He understood now that is was a touchy subject to her, and he dropped it. He had hoped she'd at least talk to him about it, but never did she once bring the topic back up again. Whatever happened couldn't have been good. Of course as he became more used to being Chat Noir, Ladybug let him use his puns and said some herself. No matter what she said or denied, Adrien knew she secretly liked them.

Still, so much had changed within a year and a half. Gabriel had finally allowed Adrien to attend Collège Françoise Dupont, making new friends while keeping his busy schedule Natalie kept, becoming Chat Noir, and the fact that his brother upped and left.

When he asked his father about it, Gabriel only would tell him that Felix was old enough to make his own decisions, whether or not he agreed with them. That and the fact that Felix had left to America, though no one really knew the reasons why.

Adrien remembered watching Felix argue with their father about the topic of leaving the family business, he having no interest in working for fashion or the industry. Yet before that, Adrien had witnessed something he never really saw before, Felix somewhat happy. There were times he saw his elder brother on the phone with someone, a hint of a smile ghosting his lips. Adrien could have sworn he even saw affection in those blue-grey eyes, which made himself slightly envious since his own brother was some what cold to him growing up. More so after the disappearance of their mother.

Felix was the one who originally given Adrien the idea of attending public school, believe it or not.

" _You know, maybe it wouldn't be so bad if you just go to an actual public school Adrien." Felix said suddenly, even though he didn't look up from his book he was currently reading to look at Adrien as he complained about not having any real friends besides Chloe._

" _You know father would never let me." Adrien protested, sighing at the idea of rejecting the idea._

_Felix peeked over his book at Adrien, his cold eyes peircing. "Have you even tried to ask? I'm sure Natalie could arrange your schedule to fit it in. Besides, it would probably be nice of you have somewhat of a normal teenaged experience."_

_Adrien raised an eyebrow. "A somewhat of a normal teenaged experience? Meaning?"_

" _How many kids your age are renowned models of a famous fashion designer that happens to be their father?" Felix pointed out the obvious, causing Adrien to sigh again. He'd never have anything in common with anyone. "Maybe you should look into getting enrolled into_ _Collège Françoise Dupont_ _."_

So that he did. Adrien had gotten enrolled into Collège Françoise Dupont with difficulty and never once did he regret it. Felix never gave him a reason why he told him to enroll into a school, but Adrien wanted to believe it was because he knew he was going to leave and didn't want to leave him all alone in that house. That was only positive thinking.

He of course had befriended Nino Lahiffe, who in reality befriended him first and saved him from Chloe's claws. Then Alya Césaire, whom Nino had properly introduced afterwards and helped clear up the whole gum incident on that first day. Then there was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, the blue eyed girl who's stare could rival his brother's.

Eventually Adrien had gotten to talk to Marinette properly, to apologize and explain that he had really been trying to take off the gum Chloe stuck on her seat. Apparently Marinette believed him, but still over the past year and a half they weren't as _close_ as he'd like them to be. He'd asked Nino and Alya why she seemed so disconnected, but they never had an answer.

According to Alya and Nino, Marinette was a nice girl and all, but there was also something about her that made him believe she knew more than she let on. She was quieter around him, less open and more closed off. As if she was afraid, but that didn't seem right to him. Adrien would never hurt her. Let alone give her any reason not to trust him or make her fear him

Of course there were the times he dropped by at her place above the bakery as Chat Noir, and her attitude was slightly different, but the same nothing less. She would only tell him to leave, or that she didn't have time. Then again she kind of reminded him of a colder Ladybug. He just wished he'd figure Marinette out someday, because even trying to bond with her over fashion was a difficult task- and she was an inspiring fashion designer!

…..

Marinette Dupain-Cheng couldn't help but get lost in her thoughts during the school hours. Sure it was more evident that she had things on her mind the past few days, and that alone bothered her. Everything just bothered her no matter how much she tried not to let things get to her.

"Mari." Alya nudged her best friend. "You okay girl?"

Marinette nodded. "I'm fine, just another late night."

It had been a year already. One year had come and gone like nothing. A year since he left her, a year since she had her heart broken. A year since she got this new Chat Noir that loved cat puns.

It used to hurt Marinette to look at Adrien Agreste every single day knowing he was _his_ brother, yet over time as she had multiple talks with Tikki, she came to realize Adrien was at no reason to be hold at fault . Sure they looked nearly exactly the same, but they also had the complete opposite personalities. It was a bit unnerving, the genetics of that family but Marinette managed to at least keep herself at bay.

Still, just trying to keep everything at bay was becoming more difficult. Originally when Marinette was first chosen to become Ladybug, she freaked out. She hadn't wanted anything to do with Tikki or fighting crime for the greater good. She wanted to be normal, and then she also lacked the self confidence in being one of the protectors of Paris.

Yet over time it had become easier. It was easy when she had Felix to talk too, who understood. There was multiple times Marinette nearly told Adrien then truth, that she was Ladybug- just so she could be selfish and have someone, but that went against everything she stood for. She had Felix at some point, and he left for some unknown reason.

Marinette would be lying if she said it didn't bother her and it didn't hurt. In all reality, it made her angry that Felix thought that he could just _leave_ without a word, push Plagg away to chose someone else, and disappear without a single call or looking back. Marinette thought she had knew the blonde, thought that they had a friendship, but maybe his cold exterior really was impenetrable.

The young fashion designer could snort at that. Felix Agreste, the day he was nice was the day hell would freeze over. Yet it confused Marinette as to why he would act like he cared, and take the time to spend time with her. Then again, no one in his family knew she was his friend, or maybe acquaintance would be a better term to use.

"Girl, you're going to tire yourself to death at this rate." Alya joke, cracking a smile at her best friend.

Marinette shrugged slightly, acting as if she didn't know that. Patrols were starting to take a toll on her as well as working her portfolio for a fashion design school, and hopefully an internship. Not only that, there was school and everything was once again so unbalanced that she could barely _breath_.

Marinette knew if Felix had been there, he would have soothed her, even helped her with the workload by taking over patrol duties and helping her by criting her designs. Then again, maybe he wouldn't. She had no idea who he truly was at this point in time anymore than a complete stranger did.

"Coffee is a girl's' best friend." Marinette pushed out, forcing a grin onto her face as she focused on taking class notes for the test at the end of the week. "Besides, it's nothing a cat nap can't fix."

Alya just chuckled under her breath, already knowing nothing she said would waver her best friend to actually listen to sensible words. The blue eyed fashion designer was just stubborn and hardheaded at that as well, but it was one of Marinette's most redeemable qualities.

Continuing to watch her friend take notes and take the occasional glance down at Adrien, Alya rolled her eyes in more amusement. No matter how many times she asked, Marinette always denied liking the blonde model. Alya had a hunch that Marinette just didn't want to admit it, but there was something else she noticed once.

There was the one time Alya pushed a little too far, only meaning it playfully but Marinette had gotten upset. It was one of the only time Alya had been the reason for making Marinette anything but happy, where Marinette was suddenly serious and completely shutting down the topic of anything male and dating. Whatever it was Marinette was keeping, no one knew about it and trust Alya to snoop.

"Are you two free tonight?" Nino suddenly asked as he turned around to face the girls, Adrien copying his movements.

Alya gave a shake of her head. "We aren't, well at least I'm not." She gave a sideway glance at Marinette. "How about you girl?"

Marinette had to think for a moment, knowing that she should probably hang out with her friends for once. Tikki had been her second mother the past week, pestering her to get out of the house and to live a little besides fighting akumas and sewing dresses. The red kwami wouldn't even let her be for five minutes. Then again it was that time of year when Felix left her.

"Yeah, I'm in." Marinette finally answered with a small grin. "What's the plan?"

"My brother is coming into town for a visit." Adrien suddenly beamed, nearly bouncing in his seat. "Natalie told me this morning. Of course our father is out of town, but I asked if we could have dinner and I could invite my friends to meet my older brother."

Marinette froze, staring at Adrien. She could feel her heartbeat speed up at just the mention of _his_ name from someone else's lips. Never once in his whole time at Collège Françoise Dupont did Adrien ever mention his brother's name. It had made being around him a little more bearable.

"You have a brother?" Alya asked, genuinely surprised.

Adrien smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, but I guess you could say that he left a while ago."

Marinette could have snorted at that understatement of the year, but she was still a little too busy panicking. Her anxiety levels were reaching new levels as her heart continued to thump at a rapid pace. She knew it was silly to be affected as so, but she also couldn't help but stress.

"I can't go." Marinette suddenly announced, causing the three others eyes to snap their attention to her.

"Why not?" Alya asked for Adrien, who Marinette knew was not helping their already questionable friendship. According to Alya, Adrien believed she hated him when that wasn't the case. It was just the fact that, for this very reason, was why she couldn't truly be friends with him. There were so many secrets, some Marinette didn't think she'd be able to share with anyone.

"I have to babysit Manon tonight." Marinette said without missing a heartbeat, trying not to let her voice waver in the lie.

"You sure that was tonight?" Alya asked, suspicion in her eyes as she stared Marinette down. "I thought that was later this week on the weekend?"

Marinette offered a convincing sheepish smile. "Nope, totally slipped my mind that it was tonight." She turned towards Adrien with an apologetic smile. "Maybe next time I can make it over at meet your brother."

 _If he's even here still, which he won't be hopefully._ Marinette stopped those negative thoughts, seeing Adrien look dejected slightly and made her feel bad. She knew he meant well, and as much as she wished she could pursue that level of friendship, she also knew the high risk that ran.

"Maybe I can take him by the bakery soon." Adrien offered an idea, one that Marinette couldn't blantly reject without upsetting someone.

Yet maybe she didn't have to worry. A part of her knew that Felix wouldn't want to even see her, after all he left. "That sounds fine." Marinette forced a bright smile onto her face. "Come around lunch, and it's on the house for the both of you."

"Really?" Adrien's whole posture lit up with excitement. It was such a Chat Noir thing of him to do that Marinette couldn't help but smile fondly.

"Yes really, silly boy." Marinette teased lightly, slinging her purse over her chest onto her right shoulder. "I'll see you three later! Have fun tonight guys."

With that, Alya couldn't help but praise at how smooth Marinette had made that lie and acted upon it. Of course Alya knew the blue haired fashion designer better than both boys combined, so she naturally noticed how rigid and uncomfortable Marinette went at the mention of Adrien's brother. Maybe it was just nerves, but really Alya could only come up empty handed as to why Marinette would react in such a way to Adrien. She knew that her best friend didn't hate the blond, even if he seemed to differ that opinion.

"Did she really have to babysit tonight?" Adrien softly asked Alya.

Alya, growing upset to be in this position, smiled and lied. "Yeah, sometimes I swear Marinette is going to lose her head. Forgetting left and right what she has planned before hand."

Adrien merely nodded, giving a smile as he let the situation go. "Be at mine around six! See you guys later!" Adrien waved as he rushed out of class to meet Gorilla at the car.

Once he was fully out of sight, Nino turned towards Alya with his arms crossed. "So why are you lying for Marinette? As much as I love the girl, she's been acting weird since the day she met Adrien and I don't appreciate he lying to my homie that way."

Alya let out a sad sigh. "Honestly Nino, I have no clue. She has her secrets, but I think she needs time to deal with them alone. When she's ready, she'll tell us all."

At least Alya hoped Marinette would eventually come to her to talk.

* * *

Felix Agreste didn't know why he agreed to even come back. He knew this city was anything but a home to him, hell it was a prison. It was everything he grew to hate, especially the damn mansion he grew up in with his younger brother, mother and father. These walls held nothing good within them, just memories he'd rather not relive.

Going back into his childhood room that he left behind over a year ago was a strange feeling. It was left untouched, yet there was not a speck of dust to be found. It was enough to let him know that at least one person had been in this room to clean it, and yet the thought angered him. The only person he had ever really invited into this room besides his mother when she was here, was Marinette Dupain-Cheng.

" _I don't understand." Marinette muttered softly, looking his those grey-blue eyes that she trusted with everything. "I don't get what you're saying Felix."_

He knew that leaving her behind was something he had mixed feelings about. Hell, he wasn't even sure what to think of the younger girl. In her civilian form she was annoying to him, but that was before he found out she was in fact, Ladybug. She had been his partner for a good two years, and maybe a little more than that. He had always put her first, it was instinct.

Yet he didn't even think twice when he left her. In all honesty, over the year he never gave Marinette a second thought. He never regretted his choices, and he never would. At least, he'd never allow himself to regret anything. By nature he was cold, and uncaring, and that was just how Felix liked things to be.

Then came Marinette, this little ray of sunshine that tried to cheer him up no matter what. He'd admit he allowed her to get close, bringing her over secretly to his room because a part of him knew if his father caught her with him in his room, it was a sign of rebelling. Maybe the whole time he was truly just using Marinette.

A chuckle left Felix's lips at the mere thought. Mind games weren't always his forte, but he became good with them. It was a skill that helped him travel this past years, an easy trick to get people to fall into his trap.

Walking further into his room, Felix kneeled down above a loose floorboard and pulled out a small box. Inside the box held some of Marinette's old sketches he kept after she'd gotten too frustrated with them.

" _You know,_ _Coccinelle, you can't get so frustrated easily." Felix said, coming up behind her as she worked over at his desk sketching away._

" _It just doesn't look right!" Marinette cried out in frustration, groaning into her hand. "You wouldn't understand Felix."_

" _Wouldn't I understand the most thought?" Felix retorted with an eye roll. "My father just happens to be a top fashion designer, who also just happens to be your inspiration."_

_Marinette puffed her cheeks out. "You're horrible. Besides, you never talk about your family. Why's that? I feel like you keep me a secret."_

_Felix couldn't help but feel the slight irritation at being questioned. Yet she was also not as mature as he was. "I don't talk to you about my family because it's not your business, and I don't talk to my family about you because it is not their business either. Besides, how would I tell them I met you? You literally fell out of the sky."_

Marinette had left not even five minutes after he had said that, and Felix knew he had upset her. He did that often with Marinette, and maybe it was because he couldn't understand how she could always be so happy. A part of him wanted her to know the coldness and cruelty of the world he knew, he wanted to take her smile away. Maybe because he felt envious, forgetting how to smile after his mother disappeared.

Everything seemed to happen after his mother had suddenly disappeared. Adrien had lost his smile, became some doll for their father to dress up and send to photoshoots- literally losing all his freedom. Gabriel had become cold, working day and night and hardly being seen. Then he had hired Natalie and Gorilla, and they became the caretakers basically. It was during that time Felix stopped believing anything good would happen, and started believing the world was cruel and selfish.

Then he had become Chat Noir, and met Ladybug. Later finding out Marinette Dupain-Cheng was the girl under the mask, and he had been curious. She had gotten to close to him, and he shut that down fast. Or at least he tried too. No matter how cold or rude he was, she'd always come back- even after she had been offended or upset.

" _I want to show you that everything isn't always bad."_ Marinette had once told him, catching him completely off guard that time. Felix sighed, shoving the box back into the loose floorboard and getting up to finish getting ready. Natalie had informed him that Adrien wanted to have dinner and introduce a few friends, and the damn woman wouldn't let him out of it no matter how much he tried.

That was how Felix found himself sitting at the large dining table exactly thirty minutes later with Adrien. It was the first time he'd seen his brother in over a year, and yet he couldn't find it in himself to react to Adrien's excitement. One thing did catch his attention though, the silver ring on his right hand. An all too familiar ring.

 _It seems that Plagg did go to Adrien with the offer of being Chat Noir then._ Not that it surprised Felix, because deep down he anticipated it. That meant that Adrien knew Marinette, and Ladybug. _Was she going to be here tonight? It would be interesting if she was._

"Felix!" Adrien greeted with a wide smile. "Welcome home!"

Felix grunted in response as Adrien literally flew at him and hugged him tightly. The blond had missed his elder brother, and just seeing him sent joy all throughout his body. Shifting, Felix pushed Adrien away at arms length, and stared him down. "I won't be here for long, Adrien, so don't get too attached."

Adrien's smile turned into a confused frown. "Why not? Where are you going?"

Felix pinched the bridge of his nose. He didn't have to answer the child in front of him, yet he knew Adrien would only continue to pester him until he got what he wanted just like he did when they were children. "Father sent for me, he wanted to talk in person about something."

As vague as it was, Adrien knew that was all he was going to get put of Felix. He was lucky to even get as much as he did. Nodding his head, Adrien's smile returned. "Then I plan to make up for lost time as long as you're here! Tonight you're going to meet two of my three friends. The last one couldn't make it, but she said to bring you by for lunch at her bakery."

For a strange reason, Felix felt somewhat relieved he didn't have to face Marinette just yet. As much as he told himself she didn't matter, he knew the moment she saw him only two things would happen. One being Marinette running away, or two, he Ladybug alter ego came out and she yelled at him until he answered her questions. Either way he wasn't ready to deal with either of them.

"Sounds like a plan then, brother." Felix muttered, lacking enthusiasm. He didn't know what Marinette was thinking, because her parents had _met_ him before. Bringing him over there through an invite was just asking for trouble, because the whole point of him never introducing her to anyone was to avoid this exact problem. If no one knew that he knew Marinette, or that she knew him, they could live in peace.

Yet maybe karama was really a bitch in the form of Marinette and this was secretly he pay back at him. Oh, two could play that game quite easily, and she would _lose_. Felix would make sure of it.

The ringing of a doorbell snapped Felix out of his thoughts, and Adrien to stop rambling- which Felix successfully zoned out of. Natalie was quick to move, getting to the door fast and opening it to reveal a boy and girl that were Adrien's age. Both teens wore glasses, and had dark complexions than himself or Adrien. The closeness between the two showed Felix that there was something there, but both were also oblivious too it.

"Felix, these are more friends Nino and Alya." Adrien introduced quickly, then looked at his two friends. "Alya, Nino, this is my elder brother Felix."

Alya stared at Felix, then at Adrien, blinked and laughed. "You two look so much alike, it's crazy."

"We are related after all. Do you have siblings, Alya?" Felix asked with distaste at being so _casual_. Alya nodded at the question. "Then it shouldn't surprise you that siblings look like one another if you have some as well."

Adrien winced at the sass in Felix's voice, looking over at a stunned Alya and mouthed an apology. Alya didn't say anything, looking flustered as she was chided for something so _trivial_. Nothing else was said as an awkward silence settled over the four, not that Felix particular minded since he welcomed the silence, and they settled at the dinning table. Natalie was quick to start serving the food, much to Nino's amazement. It was all just so fancy and new to him.

"What are the two of your professions?" Felix asked, ready to criticize.

"I want to be a reporter or journalist." Alya answered first, bravely.

"I dj." Nino stated proudly.

"Cool huh, Felix?" Adrien grinned.

Felix scoffed at the both of them and Adrien's childishness. "Nothing is cool about wanting to be a dj, music business is extremely competitive and your _friend_ here doesn't exactly stand out of the wannabe crowd." Felix judged as he bit into a piece of chicken. "Then your other friend, reporters and journalism- lot of people go into those fields."

"Well not a lot of them run the Ladyblog, which is the number site to find news on Ladybug- which makes me stand out." Alya bit out, trying to be as respectful as she could to Felix for Adrien's sake.

Nino was ready to go, because this older brother of Adrien's just happened to be just like his father.

"Felix, maybe you should calm down on the judgement." Adrien softly said, feeling Plagg squirm in his shirt pocket.

Felix was staring at Alya, so this was the girl who followed Marinette around in battle to catch it on tape. She risked her life every chance she got, which is incredibly stupid. He wouldn't admit it to anyone that he was an active viewer on the Ladyblog, especially in America. He might not care, but he did check up on the Ladyblog out of boredom, because he really believed Paris would be in shambles without his help. Only it hadn't.

"You are an idiot to constantly risk your life for footage." Felix cooly said to Alya, pushing his plate away and standing up. "I'm done for now, and Adrien- make sure your friends are gone by eight."

"We aren't staying for long, trust me." Alya bit out. "Not with you around."

Felix shrugged uncaringly, leaving the room and the three teens. It was a tense silence with the three friends, but eventually Adrien spoke up. "If I knew he would act thus way, I'd never ask you both over so he'd be little you two."

"Not your fault your brother is a douche." Alya reassured with a soft smile, anger leaving her as she spoke to Adrien.

"Yeah man, not your fault." Nino also tried to reassure. "At least Marinette didn't come."

Adrien visibly paled. "God, she would have hated me more. Now I know not to take Felix to the bakery."

Alya chuckled. "How about the three of us go for lunch at the bakery this weekend to visit Marinette?"

Adrien perked up and grinned. "Sounds like a plan."

Unknown to Adrien, Plagg had made a quick escape under the table and left upstairs. The black kwami had something to say to his previous chosen, and this time he wouldn't let the older blond get away.

* * *

It was one in the morning, and Marinette was currently watching the city lights of Paris instead of sleeping. It wasn't because she wasn't tired, it was the fact that her mind was wide awake and running a mile a minute. Chat Noir had called her to tell her that he wouldn't make it to patrol tonight, which she didn't have a problem with because she knew that he was excited to see his brother again. She briefly wondered how dinner went, but she was more than sure Alya would give her the whole story soon enough of how the night went with the Agreste brothers.

Then there was that guilt again, because she knew the truth of his identity. She knew Adrien wanted to know hers, and as silly as it sounded, she was just scared of completely trusting him. Even when he was nothing like his brother. Sighing softly, Marinette took in a deep breath and exhaled. Maybe one day she could given Adrien what he wanted, and as of now it was selfish of her to be this way, but she couldn't help it.

"You should go see him, Marinette." Tikki whispered to her chosen, knowing how much she missed her pervious partner.

"He left for a reason, Tikki. He didn't want to tell me then, and I doubt he'll even want to see me now." Marinette couldn't help the bitterness in her voice. "Besides, I think Adrien needs this time with his brother. Who knows when he'll disappear for another year or even more."

Tikki sadly watched Marinette, knowing that maybe it was time for Plagg to visit the blue haired girl. After Felix had left, Plagg had lived with the two of them for about three months before breaking the news that he needed to find another Chat Noir. Tikki never understood at first why Plagg never went to find the next Chat Noir right away until he explained that Marinette needed closure in order to accept the next Chat Noir.

Sadly, Marinette still hadn't fully accepted her knew partner. Tikki knew Marinette didn't need closure with Chat Noir, but that she needed closure with Felix Agreste. She needed to understand why he left, but even Tikki knew that Felix wasn't a kind person. It was wishful thinking.

"Marinette, maybe you should think about opening up to Adrien." Tikki suggested carefully. "Maybe he can help you, understand you better than anyone. Felix left him too, and he is Chat Noir. He's your partner now, trust in him Marinette. Let Felix go."

Marinette's heart clenched at Tikki's words, yet her face held no emotion towards the situation. She said nothing, but Marinette knew that her kwami was right. Marinette just wasn't ready to admit that out loud yet.

* * *

 


	3. No Place Like Home

**Thank you so much for the support on this story! I love you all so much and appreciate you all so much more than you will ever know. I am sorry for my lack in updating, I have college classes in the morning and work in the evening and homework in the afternoons. Time is a problem but I'm making time to update stories, and recently I've plotted the next three chapters for this story, so I really hope you enjoy this chapter.**

**ALSO fun fact, every chapter in this story is actually a title of a song that I listen to and feel like relates to the chapter and the characters. The link, or name and artist, will be posted down below in the author note at the end of the chapter.**

**Anyway, I really hope you enjoy this chapter and hopefully, the characters are more in character now! Thank you to all those who reviewed and told me the honest truth of their thoughts about how characters should act in certain ways.**

* * *

**What The Cat Dragged In**

**Chapter 02**

**No Place Like Home**

* * *

Alya wasn't letting anything from the previous night go as she relied the whole story to Marinette that morning before class started. It was one of those rare mornings that Marinette wasn't running late or completely absent for once, giving Alya more than enough time to tell Marinette how awful Felix was and how Adrien didn't really say much.

Marinette could understand why Adrien didn't say much to defend her two friends, and so did Nino, who also sat there before the bell rang and listened to Alya tell the story again with the same disbelief from last night as if she was reliving that moment.

"So Felix isn't what we thought he'd be like." Nino started to say, giving a small half shrug as he looked at Alya. "Adrien just got him back yesterday, so don't be so harsh. I'm more than sure Adrien meant no disrespect towards us. His brother on the other hand." Nino trailed off there slowly.

Nino was good at that, Marinette noted, calming Alya down before she actually blew her cool. In return, Alya just gave Nino a sideways glance and refocused on Marinette. "Even then, my point is that Felix is a total asshole."

_Noted._ Marinette thought to herself, already knowing this fact for herself. Yet the next sentence out of Alya's mouth made Marinette feel guilty again.

"Why did you bail last minute on him, Marinette?" Alya asked softly, already having a good idea why. Nino had even known she was lying the night before, but he kept his mouth shut for Alya's sake.

Yet Marinette couldn't answer the question right away, because no matter how much she lied to Alya, Marinette knew her best friend could see through her lies. Just not when it was about Ladybug, oh the irony there.

"I'm not good meeting new people, you know that." Marinette started her excuse, blue eyes snapping towards the door to make sure a certain blond wasn't walking in yet. "I didn't think I'd be very good meeting his brother and I would probably fall, and besides- you said it didn't go good.

In truth, Marinette knew all the questions she wanted to ask him would all just boil over and she would want to speak to him. She couldn't do that with other people around without the question

of how they knew each other. However, Marinette honestly believed that maybe it was better to not have contact with the previous Chat Noir, and that Tikki was right. She needed to focus on her partner  _now_ , and stop pushing the Tom Cat away.

"Well I just wanted to give you a heads up in case Adrien takes you up on that offer and goes by the bakery later." Alya says, reminding Marinette of the promise she had offered. "So you're not taken back."

Alya on the other hand knew there was something going on with Marinette, and it started with the name  _Felix_. Marinette might have been good at fooling everyone else, but Alya noticed every time the elder Agreste was mentioned how Marinette's bluebell eyes sort of got a distant and sad look in them, as if she was in some sort of pain.

It was the same look Adrien got in his green eyes when people talked about their families. Alya was rather good at reading people, yet she never questioned Marinette. Something just told her to let her friend be, and when the time came she would open up about her reasonings.

"I don't think he will be bringing his brother around Marinette." Nino says, giving Marinette a look. "He already thinks you hate him, so he won't bring Felix around believing it will only give you more reason to hate him."

Marinette's bluebell eyes widened slightly, a soft sigh escaping her lips. "He really thinks I hate him?" Marinette's voice had a sad edge, her mind going back to what Tikki and Alya had been telling her.

Maybe it was time to listen to her red kwami, it was time to start letting go of the past for her own sake and for Adrien's. It was just difficult to actually try and do, at least for Marinette it was. She just didn't exactly understand why anymore.

"My home boy thinks, one-hundred percent, that you hate him." Nino confirmed, grunting when Alya elbowed his side hard and gave him a  _really_  look.

Nino was just trying to watch out for his best friend, and they all were patient but it's been a year since Adrien started to come to Collège Françoise Dupont, and Marinette had not warmed up to him in the slightest. Well she tried a few times but then she would do a one-eighty and ditch plans. She never acted that way with anyone, not even Chloe.

"I don't hate him." Marinette confessed softly, just as the door opened again and Adrien came strolling in with five minutes to spear before the bell rang.

His green eyes locked with Marinette's blue, and she shyly looked away with pink cheeks. Alya nudged her softly, and Marinette knew she would think that maybe she had a thing for Adrien but in reality she was embarrassed talking about him in such close proximity.

Seeing Marinette look away, Adrien felt a little deflated, refraining a sigh as he once again failed to make her smile. He justed wanted to know why she was distant from him when he tried hard to get her attention and befriend her, yet she never gave him that chance.

"I'm sorry about last night." Adrien tells Alya and Nino, pushing his thoughts about Marinette to the side. "If I had known that was how he was going to act, I would have never invited you two to be criticized like that."

"I'm guessing this is why I've never been brought over to meet your dad." Alya joked with a warm smile, silently letting Adrien she wasn't upset with him in the slightest. She couldn't blame him for being excited to introduce them to his brother, giving her the reasoning that she couldn't be mad at him for how his brother acted.

Nino just gave the blond an amused smile, "I've accepted that your family will never approve or like me, so I'll just prove them wrong. You'll help me of course."

In the moment as Felix belittled his friends, Adrien wasn't sure what to actually say, so he said  _nothing_. That was his first mistake, letting his brother go at his friends. The second was just letting Alya and Nino leave without a full apology, just a shitty one that came from his surprise and embarrassment that Felix actually did what he did. Adrien didn't take lightly after the two had left, getting into it with Felix right after the door had closed.

" _You didn't have to be rude and do that to them, Felix." Adrien scowled, his green eyes filled with disappointment as his eyebrows knitted together, matching the frown on his lips._

_Felix paused at the staircase, back turned towards Adrien and foot stopped mid-air from touching the first step to go up. The elder blond didn't turn around, and he didn't need to for Adrien to know the expression that would be on his face. Annoyance pooled into Felix, yet when was he never annoyed with Adrien or anyone?_

" _You're the one who told me to go to a public school. It's because of you giving me that idea I went there, and I made friends." Adrien's fist curled slightly in frustration. He was frustrated that he couldn't understand his brother anymore. "You had no right to judge them without knowing them."_

_Felix then looked over his shoulder, his cold blue eyes unblinking as he fully turned to face Adrien. "You should surround yourself with people who will help you succeed in life. People like Chloe. Friendship is just an illusion, it won't help you make money. It's not real happiness."_

_Adrien had heard enough at this point, green eyes filled with the same anger and frustration he got with their father art times. "You and dad are more alike than you give yourselves credit for."_

_Yet Felix remained unfazed as he turned back to go up the stairs. "Don't bring your friends over here again. Father doesn't want them here, and neither do I. I won't tolerate it while I'm here."_

" _Trust me, I won't." Adrien muttered, watching as Felix walked away._

Adrien's posture brightened up hearing their words, feeling more than relieved that the two weren't mad with him. It was something he was stressing about before he came to class, how Alya and Nino would be with him. Adrien didn't want to lose the only two friends he had, and well then there was Chloe but she was a bit clingy and love struck apparently.

It still bothered him how Felix told him friendship wasn't real, but Adrien knew that having those friends were everything. Perhaps that was why him and Felix were so different, because Adrien had friends, he had people to socialize with while Felix was alone and by himself. Adrien couldn't remember a time Felix had a friend, maybe never.

Marinette decided to listen to her kwami, looking at Adrien as she began the process of turning over a new leaf. He deserved this chance, he always had the moment they met, but she never allowed him it. Maybe if she actually became a real friend, opened up (even if that came with time), she wanted to know her partner. Tikki was right, the damn kwami was always right and she knew it too.

"Actually, would you like to come to the bakery for lunch later? You too Alya, Nino." Marinette added, looking over at her other two friends on the left.

It stunned all three of them that Marinette,  _Marinette_ , was actually asking them to an event with Adrien invited. Hell, she initially looked at Adrien first, invited him, and then invited  _them_. Nino felt like maybe he had guilt tripped Marinette for a moment, then Marinette gave him that smile that told him this was her idea.

"We have croissants, my treat." Marinette added on, smiling her first real smile to Adrien.

That smiled caused Adrien's heart to unconsciously flutter in his chest, maybe it was because this was the first sign of acceptance from the bluenette. "I'd love to come over and have a croissant, but I have to hide from Gorilla. Strict diet."

"For a model, jeez." Marinette laughed slightly, and for a moment Adrien wondered how she knew that but she would of course, since she wanted to be a fashion designer. "We'll sneak you out the back and run across the street. No problem."

The school bell rang then, signalling Adrien to sit down as the rest of the class filed in with Ms, Bustier. Looking over at Marinette behind him, Adrien found that her head was tucked, and she was sketching in her notebook looking concentrated now.

"I told you she'd start to come around eventually." Nino whispered, getting a grin in return from Adrien.

* * *

Felix groaned as he laid in his bed and stared the the tall ceiling of his old childhood bedroom. He despised this room with vigorous passion, because this room held his mother's memory in it. Everything in this house reminded him of his mother, and it just made his heart  _clench_ in pain and anger. He wanted to know why she left them, where she was. If she was still here, things would be different.

Yet the whole point he came back to Paris was because his father had a task for him to do, a task that Felix was conflicted about at first but the motive behind it made him just a bit hopeful that everything would turn out the way it should have always been.

" _He's missed you Felix." Plagg had come right out with, slipping into Felix's room before the door shut._

" _He's been fine without me." Felix stated, looking at the small kwami in the eyes. "If you came in here to lecture me than the day I actually left, save it."_

_Plagg's green eyes narrowed slightly at his previous holder, not appreciating the human in front of him dismissing him so quickly. "There's no point lecturing you, but you need to fix the bonds you broke."_

_Felix chuckled then as he picked up the book on his desk, a sketchbook that didn't belong to him but one he kept with him during his time away. He didn't open it, putting it away on his book shelf before turning towards the black kwami._

" _Are you saying that for Adrien's sake or for Marinette's? You were close with her before, and I'd imagine you'd care deeply for Adrien now, more so even." Felix noted, his blue eyes unwavering as Plagg floated in front of him._

" _She was devastated after you left, Felix. Tikki had to coax her into acting normal, and it took time but she'd not the same. She needs to know why you left her. She loved you-"_

" _That was her mistake, not mine. No one told Marinette to fall in love with me Plagg. She was stupid enough to get attached." Felix cut him off, slightly surprised hearing the growl from the kwami._

" _You loved her too, and no matter how much you deny it and spit at her name, I felt your emotions when transformed." Plagg stated, which took Felix back- unaware that the kwami could feel such things. "Then there's Adrien. I wasn't with him when you initially left town, but when I came to him you were all he talked about. He needs answers and his brother. He doesn't have his father."_

_Felix remained impassive, taking his forefinger and flicking Plagg back in the air. "Once again, that's not my problem. Tell Adrien to get over it and move on." Felix then left his room, leaving the black kwami alone in his room._

_Plagg watched the door sadly, disappointment in his green eyes. "You don't understand how much you've changed."_

Felix sighed, sitting up on his bed and looking over at his bookcase with his blue eyes searching for a particular sketchbook. He easily found it, the bound sketchbook that he had gifted Marinette once for a birthday over two years ago, a few months after they had become Paris's superheroes.

He could remember her smile, that smile that never seemed to waver in its place. Felix couldn't recall a day she actually cried, or was upset, until the day he left. He didn't understand why he told her he was leaving originally, he was hellbent on silently just slipping away, but he figured he owed her that much of a goodbye, even if it had gone south. Adrien, he just told him he was going to a boarding school in London, which wasn't a lie.

Getting up from his bed, Felix sauntered up to the looming bookshelf that took up a whole wall of his room. His blue eyes were fixated on the spiral spine of the sketchbook, fingers reaching to pull it out. As he pulled it out, seeing the messed up edges of the corners with water stains from where she threw it at him that very day, he pushed it back into its spot with a scowl and turned to walk away from that spot.

"Felix, your father has requested for you to come to his office," Natalie says the moment she knocked on his door and opened it. In a way, it annoyed him that there was a lack of privacy where it was concerned the most.

"I'll be there in a moment," Felix says, taking a moment for himself before walking out of his room and making his way across the hallway towards the very room his father hardly ever left.

In the year he was gone, Felix noticed that nothing in this house had changed very much. It was still so quiet that it was easy to hear pens dropping, the walls were still white and tall with family photos that held memories of a family that no longer existed. They weren't happy. The very household was broken with secrets and high levels of grief and anger.

Walking into Gabriel's study, Felix found him standing by the window, looking out over the busy city streets where the people looked like ants from that particular spot. The man was always in this room, that was another thing that didn't seem to have changed over the year.

"You called for me," Felix stated rather bluntly, standing there and waiting for his father to turn around and look at him for once.

"When I sent you to London I thought you'd find out more over there," Gabriel says, gripping the book at his side. "Instead you brought me nothing useful and disappointment."

Unlike Adrien, Felix could careless if he brought his father disappointment. Gabriel Agreste was a very hard man to please, and Felix was not a people pleasing person. Most times he ignored what his father said, he ignored Adrien most times, and it never really made him feel guilty.

"I did what you asked of me." Felix began, watching as Gabriel turned to face him. "I went to London to search leads for mom, while you played supervillain here and came up with nothing. Every lead was a dead end, trails went cold."

Gabriel's expression turned scornful as if he couldn't accept the fact that his son failed him. It wasn't surprising that his father would be upset, yet Felix could do little about it just like how Gabriel would have to acquiesce the situation.

"I figured out another way to get your mother back-"

"You've said this before and look at where we are at now. We've made no progress." Felix crossed his arms, staring his father in the eyes. "Maybe she left because she was tired of this family."

Gabriel frowned at the statement, "We were a very happy family. There's a reason she disappeared."

"She suddenly disappeared after you two got into a huge fight, a fight big enough that she threatened to leave you and take Adrien and I with her." Felix sneered, glancing at his father's butterfly-shaped brooch that was pinned at his collar on his shirt. "What was that fight about?"

"It's none of your business," Gabriel said shortly, giving a quick dismissal of the question. For a moment he was taken back, yet Gabriel knew that Felix always knew more than he let on. It was easy for the young man to gather information but watching and listening. Always aware of his surroundings. "I figured a way out to bring your mother back, but it requires the Ladybug miraculous and Chat Noir miraculous."

Felix's attention was caught and couldn't help but be interested in what he was hearing, perking up like a cat. "I'm listening." He says, tilting his head slightly as he played with the ring on his right hand.

"Natalie already tells me you acquired a miraculous?" Gabriel questions, earning a nod from his eldest son. "Then you will use it to coax akuma targets, and when the time is right you will interfere with Ladybug and Chat Noir."

"Easy," Felix says in regards to his father's proposal with a smirk. "It'll be like taking candy from a baby, right Fuiji?"

It was then that a little white cat kwami came floating out of Felix's pocket, his small head bowed down to look at the floor remaining silent. Only he knew that there wasn't a point in telling his holder this was wrong and not the way to use the power he had.

"Yes master," Fuiji answered with reluctance.

"Good, we are on track then." Gabriel actually sounded please, more than sure now this plan would go through. "Now for other matters, you will be doing photo shoots like Adrien and slowly breaking the spirits of anyone you can."

Felix didn't smirk, didn't smile or react. He let Fuiji leave the room, ignoring the disappointment in the white kawmi's eyes. There really was no place like home.

* * *

Marinette was true to her word, helping Adrien sneak out of the school through the back as Alya and Nino left through the front to make sure no one saw them. It was the first time that Adrien was ever really alone with Marinette, traveling through the back of the bakery.

"I know you don't hate me, but I just need to make sure you're not asking me over because Nino said something on my behalf." Adrien suddenly blurted out without think, coming to a sudden halt. At first, when she invited him over, he'd been ecstatic but then when he really thought about it he came to the conclusion someone said something to her.

The statement brought Marinette to a stop, her mind running a mile a minute as she tried to figure out some sort of answer. Nino kind of had a part of it, but more so it had been Tikki. Turning to face him, Marinette smiled and shook her head at Adrien.

"No, Nino didn't say anything, Adrien," Marinette reassured, turning to walk to the door of the bakery that leads into the alley. "I know I wasn't fair with you, and that's my fault. Honestly, you're the son of my favorite and most inspirational fashion designer, and I guess it made me nervous in a way. I don't know, it's silly." She played with her thumbs as if she was nervous.

Marinette knew it was a lie on the spot, but it was the best she could come up with and by the look on Adrien's face, he seemed to believe her as well. That warm smile he gave her only made the guilt grow and she  _knew_  Tikki would say something to her the first chance she got.

"I see." Adrien hummed, realizing that the girl he wanted to be friends with for so long was intimidated by him because of who his father was. "Well don't let my father decide our friendship. I really want to be your friend Marinette."

It was that moment that Marinette found Adrien's Agreste smile contagious and warm and inviting, a smile that she could learn to trust. It was a smile she couldn't compare to his brothers, a smile that was in it's own league of it's own. A smile she returned just a bright, a smile she found painful before. Yet still felt that twinge of caution.

"I'd like that Adrien." Marinette says with a nod, opening the door of the bakery's back kitchen and stepped inside. "Now let's go get your croissants with Alya and Nino before Gorilla finds you."

Adrien didn't have to be told twice, enjoying the time he spent with the three friends he now had. It was sudden and unexpected of Marinette's sudden acceptance, but he was going to take it nothing less. In a way it was almost natural how their little group functioned, eating and joking until Gorilla came in and pulled Adrien away.

It was something he'd do over and over again, coming over here and being dragged out without a regret.

* * *

**GAH SO IT'S UPDATED! I'm so happy to finally have this chapter out. For weeks I have gone through drafts after drafts trying to figure out how I would take the story, and finally just sat down and let ideas flow on how I wanted this story to go chapter by chapter. We have a long story ahead of us my friends, and I'm super excited for it and I hope you're just as excited for this story as well because it's just the beginning.**

**I'm sorry if that last bit between Adrien and Marinette seems a bit rushed but I truly thought it was a good idea to put in because Marinette is just making a web of lies, even if she's opening a bit up to Adrien. I really hope I don't have her OOC, because I'm trying to make characters act slightly older and make more choices for themselves. Hopefully I'm doing okay with that and getting this chapter across clearly!**

**The song title for this chapter is** _No Place Like Home_ **by** _Todrick Hall._

**Please leave me a review! Reviews and feedback, and even criticism helps me so much as a growing writer and motivates me to continue and update faster. I just like knowing people enjoy my stories as well. Love you all! Please review!**


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